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A powerful earthquake hit mineral-rich northern Chile, killing at least two people, injuring more than 100 and halting output at some of the world's largest copper mines.
Two people were confirmed dead and 117 were injured in the magnitude 7.7 quake, which raised massive dust clouds in Chile's mountainous north and shook buildings in isolated cities up and down the Pacific coast.
Dozens of road workers were trapped in and around a highway tunnel that collapsed in the hardest-hit area, but were expected to be freed overnight.
In the Chilean capital Santiago, buildings swayed and unnerved even earthquake-hardened residents.
The worst damage occurred in Tocopilla, 120km north of coastal mining city Antofagasta, where people were caught under rubble from crumbling rooftops and balconies.
Tocopilla's mayor, Luis Moyano, said at least 1200 houses had been flattened, leaving 4000 residents homeless.
Aid group World Vision International, which sits on a disaster relief committee for the Chilean Government, said it had information suggesting the situation in Tocopilla could be far worse than reported so far.
Authorities said an 88-year-old woman was killed when a wall fell on top of her and a 54-year-old woman also died, although the cause of her death was not immediately clear.
Television images showed cars crushed under the concrete awning of a hotel in Antofagasta, where the quake knocked out power and phone services.
"People ran out into the streets because of how prolonged the quake was. There was a lot of alarm but no material or human damage," police chief Hernan Tamayo said in Arequipa, a town farther north near the Peruvian border.
President Michelle Bachelet was due to visit the earthquake zone today.
The United States Geological Service, or USGS, said the quake, 60km deep, was centered 106km west of the town of Calama.
- REUTERS
